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Joined: February 2002 Posts: 5750
Location: Scotland | I'm doing some work with a local company who've developed a new type of partial capo. Here's my current ebay listing for it
http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2568137814&category=7266
If any OFC members would like to try one of these email me off the board. I have a bunch of samples & can do them at a better price than in the listing. |
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Joined: March 2002 Posts: 15654
Location: SoCal | That capo looks really cool. But what's even more cool is the Deluxe Baladeer on which it's being used! |
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Joined: May 2002 Posts: 3005
Location: Las Cruces, NM | That is an interesting concept, do they make one for the 5 string banjo fifth string? That price seems high to me, especially until you have created a compelling reason to use one. But it sure would beat cranking the low E string up for playing in different keys, maybe you ought to suggest some tunings and songs that it would work on, possibly for Chet Atkins style finger picking, also it could work for dropping the low E down for some tunings and clamping it on to bring it up to standard. |
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Joined: February 2002 Posts: 5750
Location: Scotland | Bailey, it's hard to beat Rick Shubb's 5th-string banjo capo for elegance & effectiveness. These are designed for standard width guitar necks, a banjo version would be possible but hardly worth tooling up for. The $ price includes shipping to the USA, so considering the uniqueness of the product I don't think it's unreasonable. Price to OFC members is lower than quoted in the listing.
Reasons to use one of these is ultimately down to individual creativity but here's a few ideas: capo 1st string at the 8th fret. Play in C at the first position. This produces an "impossible" C chord and also creates a Gadd11 and an F voicing with a doubled 5th
Play in E with the capo on the 1st string at frets 4, 7 or 9. 4 & 7 add a major 3rd & a 5th respectively. Fret 9 adds a 6th. Again these voicings are difficult or impossible in the first position.
Capo string 6 at the 3rd fret. Tune 5th up to B and 1st down to D & you have high-bass G dobro tuning, which makes a nice alternative to the usual DGDGBD open G tuning.
There's lot's of other possibilities. BUT it's a fairly specialised doo-hickey which requires a little chord theory and some creativity. It's not for everyone & certainly isn't going to make anyone rich, but I thought it was interesting enough to get involved with. |
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Joined: May 2002 Posts: 3005
Location: Las Cruces, NM | Paul
We're not here to get rich, but to play good music, you're ideas sound fine, we are all a bunch of gadgateers, especially if it makes us play better. |
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